International Search Engine Marketing Strategies

SEM (search engine marketing) strategies that need to be considered when utilizing ISEM (international search engine marketing) include establishing and maintaining a local IP address; keyword translation and localization which includes colloquialisms, dialects, special characters and spelling; and proper search engine selection such as Baidu, Yandex, Naver, Bing, and Yahoo.

PPC puts your website in visible locations by bidding on keywords on search engines. Using multiple search engines takes advantage of varying keyword bids and spreads the risk since some countries do not or are not allowed to access certain search engines.

Beginning a PPC campaign with multiple search engines may not be monetarily feasible. Therefore, understanding how search engines work assists in pinpointing the most viable or lucrative search engine. Google Adwords and Yahoo! | Bing Network’s adCenter are the leading search engines, especially in the U.S. Also, it is vital to know which search engines are popular in the targeted countries. For example, Yahoo is the most popular search in Japan, Baidu is the most popular in China, and Miva is very popular in Europe.

It is important to note that keywords can’t be translated and should be thoroughly researched because many words do not carry the same meaning when crossing international borders. Chevrolet attempted selling the Nova in Mexico with little to no success because Nova in Spanish means “No Go.” Words can also carry differing meanings within their borders. For example, the most common Chinese usage for the term “network” is different in Shanghai than it is in Hong Kong.

Take aways: Successful website uses SEM and SEO for their overall internet marketing strategy. The choosen primary search engine must be the taragets most popular engine. Using secondary search engines spreads risk across multiple platforms. Key words can not be translated and must be fully researched before making word selections.